


Across the Universe

by orphan_account



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: F/M, Fix-It, M/M, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-03
Updated: 2020-01-03
Packaged: 2021-02-27 08:00:39
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,878
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22093738
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Death is final. All must end. Or must it?
Relationships: Poe Dameron/Finn, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 1
Kudos: 15





	Across the Universe

**Author's Note:**

> I write fics in my head when I can't sleep. This is my attempt to put this one on paper.

Lightning flashed around her, the only light in the darkness of Exegol. Chanting and explosions echoed around the cavernous room she was in. She stood in front of Palpatine, the weight of his words sinking in as though they were settling in her very bones. _Empress Palpatine? Empress Palpatine?_ She thought, her mind rushing at near light speed. _He must be lying. He was lying. He lied to Ben and to me._ She thought. But as she looked up, her eyes did not lie. The ships carrying her friends and family exploded. Poe was up there. Finn was up there. And they were dying. She lowered her eyes to Palpatine, his ivory eyes glued on her. 

"She will come to me," He said loudly, beckoning Rey closer. She obeyed, stepping slowly toward him.

"She will draw her weapon." Palpatine declared. She grabbed the lightsaber at her hip almost mechanically.

"And with her anger, she will strike me down and declare herself for the Sith. With my death, my spirit will pass through her and we will be one. She will take her rightful place on the throne of the Sith!" Chanting swelled around her as Palpatine spoke.

 _For Finn. For Poe. For the Resistance._ She reminded herself as the blue light of the lightsaber lit the space in front of her. _For my mother. For my father._

She adjusted her grip on the saber, ready to avenge them all before she felt the familiar tug on her conscious. She gave in, letting the connection flow through her, the bond on her soul ignite. She could see him. His hair was ruffled and his clothes looser than normal. He was torn up, cuts all across his face. But his scar was gone. Rey knew that scar all too well, she had caused it. But it was gone now. Their eyes met and realization washed over her. Kylo was gone now. _Ben?_

He gave her a nod and hope sparked in her chest.

 _You're not getting me that easily._

Rey readied herself as if to strike, bringing the lightsaber behind her back. She felt Ben's hand slide over hers as he gripped the saber, his fingers lingering on hers for a moment before he gripped the saber. She let go, bringing her hand back into Palpatine's view. Anger ran over her as he realized what she had done. What _they_ had done. Leia's saber flew into her hand at her beckoning as she readied herself to fight the red warriors of the Imperial Guard. 

She could see Ben's opponents as easily as she could see her own. The Knights of Ren and the Red Guard.

* * *

He could hear her; he could feel her. From the ends of her hair to the tips of her fingers, he knew every inch of Rey. Palpatine had thrown him from the fight and he tried desperately to return; not to the fight, but to Rey. He could feel her struggling against Palpatine's power. He could hear his gloating, the cockiness of the Sith Lord.

 _Was I that bad?_ He thought as he pulled himself over rock after rock. As he hauled himself upward, he let himself sink into the bond with Rey.

_"I am all the Sith." Power surged through Palpatine, his lightning crashing into the blue lightsaber of Leia Organa._

_"And I," Rey huffed, beckoning the other lightsaber toward her. The lightsaber settled into her hand, as though it belonged there. "Am all the Jedi."_

_Rey's power surged as her lightsabers crashed together, absorbing Palpatine's power. She pushed forward, feeling a thousand generations behind her. A hand rested on her shoulder._

"You are, Rey." _Ben knew that voice, strangely enough. Obi-Wan Kenobi. He steadied her, his hand squeezing her shoulder._

_Another hand rested on her other shoulder and Ben's heart skipped a beat. Anakin Skywalker. Another hand rested on her back. Luke Skywalker. A fourth hand rested on her back. Leia Organa._

"No one is ever really gone," _Luke whispered._

"These are your final steps," _Obi-Wan whispered._

"You are ready, Rey," _Leia reassured._

_Together, the four gently pushed her forward, their hands drifting away as peace settled in her. Palpatine's power surged only to rebound on him. Ben could feel him being torn apart. The combined power of the Sith pushed ricocheted, their lust for power resulting in their destruction. They destroyed themselves, pieces of the Sith Temple tearing them apart as Palpatine's power did to him. And suddenly, the emperor faded from existence._

Ben climbed upward, pride and love swelling in his chest, when another feeling barreled over him. Death.

"Rey," He breathed.

If he thought he felt urgency before, it was nothing compared to the feeling he had now. He hauled himself upward, pain ripping through his body but he could hardly care. His hand gripped the ledge as rocks scrapped over his body. He could see Rey lying completely still in the middle of the floor. He focused completely on her, nothing else mattered. Ben crawled forward, the weakness he felt from Palpatine tearing at his bond with Rey weighing him down. Or was that really what weighed on him?

_A dyad in the Force._

The words echoed through his mind. Dyads were unstable unless both were there to balance it. He was alone. The dyad was incomplete. And it was taking him down with it.

He crawled to Rey's body, pulling her into his arms as best he could.

For a long time, he had no emotions. At a young age, he turned off his emotions. He rarely felt anything, including the death of his father. It stung, but it barely fazed him. What had, however, was Rey's contempt, her longing for who he used to be, the way she looked at him when she beckoned him to join her. He wanted them together, for the Sith or for the Jedi, it hardly mattered to him. Where Rey went, he felt compelled to follow. 

Rey's body sat limp in his grasp. He pulled her closer as he sent out a desperate plea into the Force.

_Help me._

A feeling washed over him as a voice whispered to him. _"You know what you have to do. Finish what I started, my grandchild. Do what I could not."_

Ben pulled Rey away from him as he let out a calming breath. _What his grandfather could not._ He pulled at the feeling of peace Rey had, a feeling she had offered to him as well. He rested a hand on her as he closed his eyes, focusing on the Force. Not just any Force, his own Force and more specifically, the piece that Rey had given him of her own. He let it drift back into her as another feeling pulled at the back of his mind. He pushed it aside, his only concern for the woman in his arms. He felt the Force flow through him, he felt the bond between him and Rey sparking. _Please._ He begged and suddenly, the bond exploded.

Rey's hand rested on his and his eyes flew open. She smiled at him and his heart fluttered in his chest. She was alive. Rey was alive!

"Ben." She whispered as she placed a hand against his face. 

Feelings echoed back and forth between them and Ben couldn't tell which feelings belong to whom. Honestly, he didn't care. Their bodies drew together, their lips crashing together. 

Peace. Love. Happiness.

He was happy. They pulled away from each other, Rey's smile making his heart thunder.

The feeling in the back of his mind pulled at him more. _More, more, more._ It demanded. He opened his mouth, ready to speak, before suddenly it overwhelmed him and he fell into darkness.

This wasn't death. He knew death, he had experienced it as if he had died when Rey's death crashed into him. This wasn't death. This was-

* * *

Ben's eyes slid shut as his body fell backward. The moment he crashed into the ground, he faded. Fear ripped through Rey followed closely by grief. 

"Ben?" She asked, desperation washing over her as his clothes folded together. "No. No, no, no. BEN!" She pulled herself onto her knees, a tremendous effort considering the weakness she was still feeling. It was desperation that caused her to reach for her bond with Ben. The bond was still there. She pulled, trying to bring herself to Ben in desperation before realization hit her. The bond was still there. Ben was alive. But their bond was muted as though they were on opposite sides of glass and couldn't touch.

_He's alive._

She knew what she had to do. Rey pulled herself upward, grasping his clothes in her hand. With a great effort, she pulled herself toward Luke's ship, holding Ben's clothes against her chest. She climbed into the ship and on pure instinct, felt herself begin to pilot it. The ship lifted into the air and relief flooded over her. She looked out the window, first seeing Poe. She could see the sigh of relief he let out, but she could feel it more. She turned to the other side, following another feeling of relief to see the Falcon next to her and Finn visible in the cockpit. Together, they entered lightspeed, bound for the place they called home.

Rey touched down moments after Finn and Poe. She left Ben's clothing on the ship, knowing she would return soon. Happiness flooded in from all around her. Happiness, wonder, relief. She jumped from the ship, her feet landing on familiar ground. She moved toward the distinct figures of Finn and Poe before she stopped. Another feeling crashed over her. Love.

As she knelt to greet BB-8, she could see her friends in the distance.

"General." Finn greeted as he pulled Poe into his arms.

"General." He answered. 

They pulled themselves apart slightly only for their lips to crash against each other. Rey stood from her greeting with BB-8 as yet another realization washed over her. It was no secret to her than Finn and Poe loved each other, she had felt that from them both immediately. But what shocked her was a similar feeling to a very familiar experience of her own. A bond. A _Force_ bond. 

As they pulled apart, Finn's eyes found Rey in the crowd and suddenly the three of them ran to each other, crashing together. She could feel Finn's happiness, his relief. But she could also feel Poe's utter joy. They clung to each other, a family.

Well, most of it.

As she pulled away, she looked at Finn. "I know what you were going to tell me now."

"You do?" He asked, emotions emanating chaotically from him. 

Next to her, she let rocks rise feeling the Force flow through her into them as they hovered off the ground. "Luke told me that being a Jedi was more than lifting rocks. I lifted rocks on Crait after the battle." Her eyes met Finn's. "But it was _you_ who pushed them aside." Her hands folded into Finn's. "I know."

Finn let out a sigh of relief. "I just wanted you to know you weren't alone."

* * *

Ben stood, gazing around at the darkness surrounding him. It never seemed to end. He walked in one direction before he was pulled to a stop. Rey pulled at the bond between them, desperation filling every inch of her body. He pulled too, trying to bring himself to her, but he couldn't. Something was between them. He pounded on it, trying to force his way through until Rey's emotion's changed.

_He's alive._

"Yes! He called. Rey, I'm alive." He could feel her determination, muted as it was. "Rey." He breathed.

They would find each other again. He knew it. He could feel it as much as he could feel the air against his cheek.

He turned again, his own determination pushing him to leave the darkness. To go to her as she went to him. 

It felt like days as he walked. It could have been minutes. Hours. Years. But still, he walked into the never-ending darkness. The more he walked, the more it seemed to stretch as if it were determined to never let him go.

 _Maybe Rey wasn't coming for him._ A voice whispered in the back of his mind. _Maybe she had given up._

He fell to his knees, feeling hopelessness deep in his gut.

 _You don't believe that._ A voice whispered to him. He forced himself to look up as a sudden, soft blue light lit the infinite darkness around him. There, in front of him, stood his mother, as clear as day.

He stood and ran. Their bodies collided as though she were solid. He folded her smaller form into his arms as a million feelings washed over him. 

"Mom," He whispered as he pulled away slightly, not letting her out of his grasp. "Mom, I'm so sorry. I never should have-" He cut himself off. "I-" He tried again as shame rushed through him. "Can you ever forgive me?"

"The real question is, can you forgive yourself?" She rested a hand on his cheek. 

"Mom, I-" He stopped again.

She smiled and his heart warmed. "As your father would say, 'I know.'" She grasped his hands. "Forgiveness is not given. It's earned. And you have much to earn."

He looked around him. "Is this my punishment then?"

His mother laughed. "No. This is not a punishment. This is a test."

"A test." He asked.

"To see if you are worthy of earning forgiveness."

He turned back to his mother. "Where am I?"

"It's known as the World Between Worlds. A place of great power. It's pure Force, connecting every place and time through a series of doors."

He nodded. He was well aware of this, of Palpatine's quest to enter it. And now here he was.

"Find her."

His mother faded.

_Find her. Find her. Find her._

"I'm coming, Rey." He continued his journey but this time it was different. Before, he went by sight. Now, he once again pulled at his bond with Rey and it was that which he followed.

* * *

Rey landed on the sand planet of Tatooine. It reminded her eerily of Jakku. BB-8 rolled along behind her, reminding her of her conversation with Poe before leaving.

_"Take BB-8 with you." He gripped her hand._

_"I can't. BB-8 belongs with you."_

_"You're right." He squeezed her hand. "So, bring him back to me." However, she heard the underlying message. Come back to us._

_"I will."_

Rey found the moisture farm easily. There was a pull here, something familiar. She stood on the lip of the dwelling. She could feel everyone who ever stepped foot in the dwelling. Anakin Skywalker. Padmé Amidala. Owen and Beru Lars. Luke Skywalker. She grasped a piece of metal and slid down the sand. Anakin and Luke had been within these walls. Her fingers drifted over the stone, the sand. There was something else here. She walked back up the sand until she found what beckoned her. Three headstones sat next to each other. Rey walked to the one on the end before kneeling and pressing her hand into the sand. A calm feeling washed over her.

Shmi Skywalker.

Rey removed two lightsabers from her pack and looked them over. Luke and Leia. Alderaan was long gone; Leia's home was an asteroid field now. But Tatooine. It still existed. The place where it all began. Anakin's home. Luke's home. The Skywalkers started here. She folded the lightsabers into a cloth together before pressing her hand against them. And here they laid, together. The sabers sunk into the sand.

* * *

Ben followed his bond until he fell through a door. He wasn't thinking, he was only feeling. Until he fell onto sand. The sand shifted under him as something sunk into it. He looked up, following the shadow which was cast over the sinking sand. Rey stood in the sunlight, her new saber crackling in the air. Gold. How fitting.

Each lightsaber had a meaning. Gold meant truth. Of course, she would value truth. She knew the truth about him, as she always had. And now she knew the truth about her family. The lightsaber shut off as he stood, reaching out for her.

"It's been so long." A voice said. Both heads turned to follow it, Ben's hand frozen in the air. "It's been so long since anyone was here." The older woman looked Rey over. "What's your name?"

"Rey," She answered with a sad smile, but her voice was muted. He wasn't here; he wasn't with her.

"Rey what?" 

Rey looked in the distance, a gaze he followed. His mother and uncle stood in the distance, knowing smiles on their faces.

"Skywalker." She answered as she turned back. "Rey Skywalker."

"Rey." He breathed. 

She suddenly looked over her shoulder, as though she had heard him. 

"Ben." She whispered. She turned, staring at where he was, but not at him. 

"Rey," He repeated.

She closed her eyes and let out a breath. "Be with me."

He stepped closer, attempting to rest a hand on her arm. Her eyes shot open.

"Ben." Her voice was surer. "I will find you." She said firmly. "I will always find you."


End file.
